


Reunion

by Miksykat



Category: Henry Stickmin Series (Video Games)
Genre: Angst, Ghosts, Selectively Mute Henry Stickmin, This Is Not Going To Go The Way You Think, Valiant Hero Ending | VH (Henry Stickmin), or it might idk i don't know what you think, who wants to go kill the toppat clan?? multiple characters raise their hands, yee haw murderghost tiem
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-11-03
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:53:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27372244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Miksykat/pseuds/Miksykat
Summary: "For a moment Henry felt nauseous. This had to be some sick prank, or some bastard deity’s way of taunting him, or some strange and improbable trick of the light. Maybe he had fallen asleep while he'd been crying and this was all a dream. He wanted so much to believe that this was real, though. He'd been desperate those first few weeks for Charles to just walk into base, maybe a little banged up, butwholeandalive. He wanted so much for this to be real.So Henry swallowed down his nausea and hesitantly spoke.“Charles?”Charles look him right in the eyes and positivelybeamed."----A reunion between a lost hero and a broken man. I wonder, what could make this man break further?
Relationships: Charles Calvin & Henry Stickmin, little tiny hint of Charles Calvin/Henry Stickmin because i cant resist peppering in some gay
Comments: 7
Kudos: 126





	Reunion

**Author's Note:**

> this au was in part brought to you by [cloudys_artpalace](https://instagram.com/cloudys_artpalace?igshid=11xmf02xdsie3) on Instagram!! follow her right the hell now she helps me think of things and she is so wonderful and if you don't follow her im coming for your knees ok shes a genius and currently the fuel for my inspiration

“Hey Charles,” Henry said as he approached the cliffside grave. “I’m back again. Sorry it's been a while since my last visit, mission ran a little long.”

Henry sat down in front of the gravestone and sighed. It'd been two months since the space station. Two months since Charles was lost to the stars forever.

It'd been about a half a week since his last visit, and half a week since Galeforce asked him to help get rid of the slowly resurging Toppat clan. Of course he had agreed, Charles had given his life to take them down and like hell Henry would let them stomp all over that sacrifice by getting right back on their feet. However, that unfortunately meant that he wouldn't be able to visit Charles every day anymore. The only downside.

“Hope you didn't get too lonely while I was gone,” Henry said to the dirt. “The General promised to visit you while I was away. If he didn't I'll be pretty pissed at him.”

He looked up at the gravestone, read the name engraved on it over and over again. “You probably wouldn't be too mad at him though, huh?”

A beat of silence. “Missions are too quiet without you. Nowhere near as enjoyable, either. Just… tiring.”

“Everything's a little more tiring lately. Galeforce said I should maybe see a therapist or a grief counselor or whatever. I'm not going to though. No point. I've got to focus on finishing what we started. Things will be better, then.”

He was getting choked up now, words wouldn't come to him. Damn it, he didn't come here to cry again, he'd cried enough this morning. He switched to sign. “Not as good as when you were here, never as good as when you were here.” Henry was full on crying now, silent sobs shaking him and making his hands shake. “You should have gotten to come _home_ , Charles.” He wiped his face for a moment, then finally signed again.

“I miss you.”

Then, he sat there in the silence that followed, and cried.

____

The sun had set an hour ago, it was getting cold, and Henry had finally cried himself out. He decided it was about time to go home now. Sure, he may have been wearing a jacket, but that didn't protect his tear-soaked face from feeling the chill, and he just wanted to go to bed at this point.

Henry sighed. “Sorry for bursting out crying like that,” He signed to the cold slab of stone. “I know you never did like when people cried, made you cry too.”

He brushed the dirt off his hands and wiped the snot off his face before he continued. “It's late now. I have to go home. I'll see you tomorrow, unless they find another Toppat base.”

He stood up and brushed the dirt off his pants, then looked down at the empty grave. “Bye, Charles.” He mumbled. Henry looked up, about to turn and leave, but he froze in his tracks.

There was someone standing behind the gravestone.

The man was about an inch taller than Henry, wearing a broken and beaten up pair of red headphones, his face smeared with soot. His headphones were on fire, but he didn't seem to notice nor mind. He was staring right at Henry with wonderful green eyes that looked so, _so_ worried.

He barely looked any different than the day he died.

For a moment Henry felt nauseous. This had to be some sick prank, or some bastard deity’s way of taunting him, or some strange and improbable trick of the light. Maybe he had fallen asleep while he'd been crying and this was all a dream. He wanted so much to believe that this was real, though. He'd been desperate those first few weeks for Charles to just walk into base, maybe a little banged up, but _whole_ and _alive_. He wanted so much for this to be real.

So Henry swallowed down his nausea and hesitantly spoke.

“Charles?”

Charles look him right in the eyes and positively _beamed_.

____

Charles Calvin's last thoughts as he lay there on the orbital station floor were as angry as they were afraid.

Yes there was certainly pride there. He'd gotten to use his greatest plan, after all, and it had worked! The Toppat orbital station was going to be completely destroyed.

Charles was going to be completely destroyed, too. Killed in action, going out in a blaze of glory exactly like he used to dream of. Didn't feel as heroic when it was mere minutes away, especially not now. Not when he'd just started to dream of a different future, one where he and Henry got to go on missions together and one day retire and-

Wait, Henry! Jesus, this was going to wreck him. Charles had seen enough survivor's guilt to know Henry was probably already blaming himself for this. That wouldn't do at all! He had to offer some comfort and positivity, had to keep a level head. Pilots need to keep calm in bad situations, he was trained for this, he couldn't afford to spiral right now.

So he pressed the button to open communication and spoke.

“H-Henry, you there?” Background noise indicating the button was pressed, Henry was listening. “Man, that roughed me up,” An understatement, if he got out of this alive he'd be covered in bruises for weeks and probably have a couple casts. “Got ‘em though.” He shouldn't have had to, they were supposed to go home, if that Toppat bastard hadn’t rushed in he'd be on that escape pod right now. But the fucker had gone for Henry, and good god if Henry had been the one stuck here with impending doom looming over his head Charles would have never forgiven himself.

If Charles went out here, Henry would probably never forgive himself either, so he struggled up on his feet and decided he was going to at least _try_. “Gotta be another escape pod around here somewhere…” There had to be. _There had to be_.

Focus. Positivity. Can't freak out or Henry will freak out.

“We did it though, we got ‘em.” They did, but _god_ he didn't want to die here. The Toppats had been such a huge thorn in his side for so long, and now they'd be the literal death of him. _It wasn't supposed to go this way_.

“Heh- Pretty good plan,” Such a good plan. “You could say it was the greates-"

Heat.

Light.

Then, nothing.

Then he was behind Henry in the escape pod, and Henry was banging on the door and screaming and sobbing and begging the door to open and calling for Charles, and Charles reached out to try and comfort him or say _I'm here, I'm right here_ -

He couldn't see his hand.

He couldn't see _himself_. At all.

Charles looked at Henry, at the light outside that looked so much like fire and was getting farther and farther away, and realized something awful.

He was dead.

He had _died_ in that damned Toppat station.

Charles Calvin's first thoughts were just as angry as they were sorrowful.

He was dead, he was gone forever and yet _he was still here_ and he had to watch _The_ Henry Stickmin completely break. And as Charles watched Henry fall to his knees and lean against the door and wail, he realized something.

It could so easily have been Henry in that station when it exploded. That Toppat had dragged _Henry_ out, it so easily could have been Charles sobbing on the escape pod's floor alive and breathing while Henry was blown to bits.

That fact made Charles _angry_. That fact made Charles want to hunt down every single surviving Toppat and strangle them with his own two hands. The Toppats had killed him, and even worse, they had almost killed Henry. That was an unforgivable crime.

So in that moment Charles decided two things. One, that he would personally see to it that every single Toppat member that didn't die here was dragged to the deepest pits of hell.

And two, no one would ever get the opportunity to even _try_ to take Henry away from him again.

____

Two months passed, Charles getting stronger and more present every day. Henry couldn't see him yet, but that was okay. He'd have forever to talk to Henry once he was strong enough.

He followed Henry everywhere he went, watched Henry shuffle through the base in a daze. Watched Henry be given the only piece of Charles that came back to earth, a little shard of his headphones that he'd carved his name onto. Watched General Galeforce try to reach out to Henry, and watched Henry reject every attempt. Watched Henry wake up at night screaming his name, watched Henry not go back to sleep at all those nights.

Charles was there when the General approached Henry, saying that the Toppats were regrouping, asking if he wanted to help take them down. Charles didn't know whether to be worried or overjoyed when Henry immediately said yes. He didn't want Henry to be in danger, yet in those blue eyes he saw just as much hate as he felt and the common goal delighted him.

Charles was there when Henry collapsed a whole Toppat base with members still inside. He knew a lot of them had died, because while he couldn't see them, he could hear them wailing in confusion and fear. He must have looked pretty damn scary, because suddenly he could see faint shadows of people all looking at him with terror in their eyes.

Oh, they should be scared all right. Charles' teeth were sharp now, and he was _hungry_.

____

Charles had listened to what Henry said every time he visited Charles’ grave. He listened to every update on Henry's life even though he'd been there, watched Henry break down crying so many times. This was no different.

Charles had been standing there watching for hours now, and his patience was starting to wear thin. Not with Henry, never with Henry, but with whatever weird ghost rules that wouldn't let Charles talk to or touch or be seen by him. It was infuriating. It had been two months and he couldn't even see the grass through his own shoes anymore but he was still completely invisible to Henry.

But then Henry had gotten up, brushed himself off, and then looked directly at Charles. Not through him, at him. Henry could see him! He almost wanted to look behind himself just to check and see there wasn't something else there, just to be sure, but as he searched Henry's face he found all the proof he needed.

“Charles?” Henry said, like he thought saying anything would make him disappear.

Charles could feel the big idiot grin on his face, he was delighted.

“Hi Henry!”

**Author's Note:**

> this was supposed to be a oneshot but it got out of hand and is now one of the longest things I've written in quite a while. i wasn't gonna post this until i finished it but i decided id post it now and mark it as a two chapter thing because despite knowing how i want this interaction to go i cannot for the life of me figure out how to execute it so you get this bad boy early.
> 
> yes there will most likely actually be more writing this time i swear because my favorite horse is fuelling my creativity right now, though i cant promise it will be just this au because weve got like three
> 
> thank you for reading, remember to bully me in the comments, and have a good day


End file.
